August Brooks still couldn't believe he had let Chase talk him into it. A popular cable 
television series called America's Scariest Places was coming to Southern California, 
and Chase had talked his partner into signing up. August figured they'd never be picked, 
so he amused Chase and agreed to fill out the on-line application. He was shocked three 
weeks later when he received a phone call saying they had been chosen.
	At the moment, August was in his backyard with Kendra. Chase McDonald and Alex 
Clairmont were there as well, along with James Harris. All five of them had been talked 
into signing up by Chase, and they were now waiting as the show's camera crew finished 
setting up. They were preparing to shoot some interview segments of each participate, as 
every episode of the series started with them.
	"I can't believe I let you talk me into this, Mac," August said.
	"Relax, August," Chase replied. "It'll be fine."
	"They won't even tell us where we're going."
	"That's because it's a surprise, August."
	The director walked over and said, "We're just about ready everybody. It'll only be 
a couple more minutes. Now these are just interview segments, so they don't require much. 
Just be yourself and answer the questions as if they're any other questions."
	When he left, August looked at Chase again and repeated, "I can't believe I let 
you talk me into this, Mac."
	Chase just smiled and said, "Trust me, partner."



CHASE McDONALD - LOS ANGELES HOMICIDE DETECTIVE
	"I'm something of a believer. I think there's a lot of stuff out there that's not 
part of our world as we know it. Um, I'm very open-minded toward that kind of stuff, 
supernatural and all that. I've seen some stuff in the past couple of years that, while 
not really qualifying as paranormal or whatever, definitely makes me sort of open my eyes 
and say that there is *something* out there."


AUGUST BROOKS - LOS ANGELES HOMICIDE DETECTIVE
	"I think I'm something of a skeptic. I mean, I've seen some strange stuff in my 
career as a detective, but I've never really seen anything that made me believe in the 
supernatural or paranormal or stuff like that. I think it's just been a lot of typical 
L.A. wackos. So no, I don't really believe in ghosts and stuff like that."


KENDRA BROOKS - WIFE
	"I don't believe in any of this kind of stuff. Ghosts, demons, supernatural, all 
that stuff. I think it's all just a bunch of phoney claims and pranks. I think a lot of 
what people claim are supernatural activity is just their own perceptions of things 
exaggerated either on their own or by their own fear."


ALEX CLAIRMONT - TELEVISION COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR
	"I'm very open to the world of the supernatural. As a little girl growing up in 
England, I used to hear stories all the time about local houses and cemetaries and other 
places that were supposedly haunted, and me and my friends would often go exploring some 
places to find out for ourselves. We never saw an actual ghost or anything, but we had 
some . . . [laughs] . . . some experiences."


JAMES HARRIS - LOS ANGELES HOMICIDE DETECTIVE
	"I am extremely open-minded to all things supernatural and paranormal. It's an area 
that has always interested me, from my childhood up to now. I love reading the books and 
watching all the documentaries about haunted places and ancient legends and such. I truely 
believe that there are things in this world that are not from this world. And so I would 
not be surprised to go whereever it is we're going and have some ghostly experiences."



Riding in the van that evening, August still had no idea where they were going. All he 
knew was that they were out of Los Angeles, moving west on Sunset Boulevard. At a fork in 
the road, Sunset veered southwest, but the van continued straight, on a road that became 
Doheny Road. "I wish they'd tell us where we're going," he said.
	"August," Kendra said beside him, "you're starting to sound like a scared little 
kid."
	"I am not scared. Chase, do I sound scared?"
	In front of him, Chase glanced back over his shoulder. "Well, maybe just a little."
	"I am not scared," August repeated. "I just want to know where we're going."
	Chase turned as the trip continued. "So you used to go exploring haunted houses 
when you were a kid?"
	Beside him, Alex nodded. "I've had my share of them."
	"Anything memorable?"
	"Oh, plenty," she said with a laugh. "Plenty. There was a large old mansion in our 
town that had been built during World War I. After it was finished, the owners moved in, 
but just a month later they were found dead. No one ever figured out how they died or who 
killed them, if anybody. But it's supposed to be a haunted place. My friends and I used 
to go see it all the time; it's a beautiful place. But we could only work up the nerve to 
go inside once."
	"And what happened?"
	"We were in there for about two minutes before we can running out, and we didn't 
stop until we reached out block." She laughed. "I don't think we saw anything, it was 
just the imposing feeling of the place."
	The van turned right off of Doheny Road and onto Loma Vista Drive. "We're turning," 
August said, looking out the window as if trying to see their location. "We just turned 
onto Loma Vista Drive. I've lived in L.A. for years. Where the hell are these streets?"
	At the very back of the window, James was smiling amusement.
	The van drove for a short distance before passing a sign that said WELCOME TO 
GREYSTONE PARK. The van turned in through the park entrance and drove along the hillside. 
Moments later, it pulled through a fancy wrought-iron gate, and through the front 
windshield, they could see one of the most dramatic estates in Beverly Hills. The van 
parked, and everyone climbed out.
	Kendra looked up at the mansion. "This place is beautiful," she said.
	"Yeah," James said. "There's definitely going to be some ghouls in there."
	August shot him a look as if to say "don't say that," and James laughed. Another 
car arrived moments later, and the director and some assistants climbed out. The 
assistants went around to the trunk as the director came forward. "Lovely place, isn't 
it? Greystone Mansion."
	"What's the history behind it?" Alex asked.
	"Don't worry. You'll receive all the details later. Right now, we need to get you 
suited up with your camera rigs, so if you'll come with me."



A short time later, the van and car pulled away through the main gate, leaving the five 
of them to stand by themselves before the intimidating mansion. With the sky nearly 
darkened, it was something of a frightening place. Each of them had been outfitted with 
a rig they wore over their shoulders, fastened around their waist. A tiny camera was 
positioned on an arm sticking out from the chest plate, angled up toward their faces. A 
light was mounted on the right shoulder of the harness, and they each had been given a 
small digital camcorder with extra batteries and tapes.
	"Okay," Chase said, looking at the others. "Let's get going."
	He took the first step forward, and the others followed. He walked up to the front 
door and pushed it open. The hinges squeaked as it swung open, and Chase stepped in. 
August came in slowly, glancing side-to-side first before proceeding past the door. 
	"Hello?" Chase called. His voice echoed.
	"Hey," James said. He heard his voice return as well.
	August smiled and decided to play along. "Yo!" Nothing. Not a single echo. Dead 
silence. August swallowed. The girls traded glances.
	Chase pushed on through the large entrance foyer and through the next doorway, into 
the formal living room. A large table was in the center of the room, surrounded by some 
chairs and lit with candles on both the tabletop and standing holders. A small television 
sat in the middle of the table, but was off at the moment.
	"This is where we're supposed to wait," James said, and they each took a seat.
	Somewhere in the darkness behind them, a door opened, and a man came forward. He 
was dressed all in black. "Good evening," he said with a distinct voice. It was David 
Warner, the well-known character actor from such films as Tron, Time After Time 
and The Omen. He had been the host of the show since it's debut two years earlier, 
and had proved to be an excellent casting choice, carrying a bit of English charm and 
having a voice that perfectly suited the eerie feeling of the show.
	He stopped at the head of the table. "And welcome to Greystone Mansion. This was 
the home of Edward Ned Doheny, Junior, his wife, and their five children. Doheny was the 
son of oil tycoon Edward Doheny, Senior. In 1910, the edler Doheny bought 429 acres in 
Beverly Hills after striking it rich in the oil industry in the 1890s. He gave the 22-
acre plot to his son, Ned, as a wedding present in 1914, but the younger Doheny and his 
wife left the land alone until 1925. The house took three years to build and cost three-
point-one million dollars. On the night of February 16, 1929, only six months after the 
family moved in, Ned Doheny was found by his wife, shot dead, the apparent victim of a 
murder/suicide."
	August glanced at Chase as if to again say, "I can't believe I let you talk me into 
this."
	"On February 16," David continued, beginning to walk around the table, "Hugh 
Plunkett, a close friend of Ned Doheny's and his personal secretary, arrived here at the 
mansion. Mister Plunkett, in the months prior to February 1929, had began exhibiting 
signs of a nervous disorder. He was taking medication, but there was talk among his 
doctor and the Dohenys of sending him to a sanitarium. When Plunkett arrived at the 
house, Ned's wife, Lucy, told him he should go away. Ignoring her words, he gained access 
to the grounds and went to the guest bedroom on the first floor where he often stayed.
	"Ned found him there around ten PM. At ten-thirty, the Doheny family physician, 
E.C. Fishbaugh, was called and told that he was urgently needed at the Doheny home. When 
Fishbaugh arrived, Lucy told him that Plunkett and her husband were in the guest bedroom. 
As they proceeded down the hallyway, they saw the door to the bedroom ajar, and Plunkett 
standing by it. He warned them not to come any closer, then shut the door. Immediately 
after, a gunshot rang out. When the doctor entered the room, Plunkett was lying on the 
floor, shot through the head, the gun lying by his side. Ned lay on the floor by the beds, 
next to an overturned chair, barely alive with a gunshot wound to the head."
	He paused at the head of the table, resting his hands on the back of an unoccupied 
chair. "Investigators determined that Plunkett had taken a .45 caliber revolver from the 
Doheny garage and had shot Ned Doheny, then turned the gun on himself. Testimony about 
Plunkett's unstable behavior over the previous six months, and Doctor Fishbaugh's 
testimony about the family's concern for Plunkett's sanity, reinforced this finding. No 
formal inquest was ever held. Lucy Doheny continued to live here until her death in 1955. 
The estate was eventually willed to the city of Beverly Hills."
	He paused for dramatic effect, and it seemed to be working. The five of them were 
trading glances. Even Chase looked like he was beginning to reconsider his eagerness to 
sign up for the show.
	"Over the years," David continued, "questions have arisen about the events of that 
dreadful night. Various rumors began to surface. That Plunkett and Doheny were more than 
just good friends, and that Lucy killed them in a fit of jealousy. That Plunkett shot 
Doheny in a quarrel over his salary. Questions were raised about the timing of the 
killings. Was there a delay between the time of the deaths and the arrival of the police? 
Were the bodies moved to better suit the story told to the police? Was there an effort 
made to make Plunkett look crazy, to make the murder/suicide more plausible? The 
undeniable wealth and influence of the Dohenys added to the public's fascination with the 
tragedy.
	"But this mansion remains untouched by time, and this is where you five brave souls 
come in. You are here to explore the house of a bygone era, a house many claim is haunted 
by the souls of those who experienced a great tragedy that dark night seventy-two years 
ago. You will be alone in this 22-acre, two-story, 55-room mansion throughout the night. 
You will face your fears, perform supernatural and paranormal experiments to determine the 
prescence other-worldly beings. And you will do so bravely, proving yourself to be the 
brave individuals you all believe you are."
	Upon an unseen signal, five more people appeared from the same door and came forward, 
each carrying what looked like a small burlap sack.
	"To begin," David said, "you will each be hooded and taken to a separate area of 
the mansion, and you will have to find your way back here. Once you have all returned, 
you will receive the next challenge. I wish you all good luck."
	With that he turned and walked away, disappearing into the darkness. The assitants 
went about placing the hoods of their heads. As the hood was lowered over August's head, 
all he could say was, "Chase, what did you get me into?"
	The five were each lead from the room by one of the assistants. They did their 
best to keep track of their movement, trying to remember each turn and stairs they took 
up or down, but it was difficult. By the time the person guiding them said, "Sit" and 
they felt themselves being lowered onto a chair, they had all forgotten. They each had 
been instructed to remain in their seats until a signal was given over their walkie-
talkies, which would give the go-ahead for them to remove their hoods and began searching 
for their way back.



Chase estimated it had been about ten minutes before he heard the click and pulled the 
hood from his head. He was sitting in the middle of a large room. He stood, dropping the 
hood onto the seat, and turned. It looked like a bedroom, and as his eyes adjusted to the 
darkness, he could make out the shape of a canopy bed against one wall. He reached up to 
his shoulder light and adjusted it over, illuminating the far side of the room. Then he 
took from his pocket the piece of paper that had been given to him. He had been told to 
place it in his pocket and not read it until he had unmasked.
	His right hand through the strap of the digital camera, he unfolded the paper and 
tried to read it, angling his shoulder-light down. "'You are in the master bedroom,'" he 
read aloud. "'This was the room shared by Ned Doheny and his wife, Lucy, for the sixth 
months that they occupied the house. It is said that Lucy's spirit still remains in the 
room, longing for the time when she was once alive and with her husband.'" He returned 
the note to his pocket and glanced about. "Great."



August pulled his hood off and dropped it the floor. All he could recall is that he had 
climbed a lot of steps. He stood and turned. The room was dark. It must have been large, 
because he couldn't see even the ceiling. He swivled the shoulder-light around, but 
couldn't find any walls to illuminate. The light barely even reached the roof. "Okay, 
August," he said, reaching into his pocket. "Let's see where you are so you can get back 
and strangle your partner." He unfolded the paper and read that he was in the attic.



Kendra dropped her hood to the ground and got to her feet, pulling a strand of burlap 
from her face. She thought for sure she was on the second floor, because she could recall 
going up only one flight of stairs, then moving straight before making a lot of left and 
right turns. It appeared to be a bedroom. She approached the bed slowly, the digital 
camera raised and taping. The bed was covered with dust, the sheets and pillows tossed 
about as if they had never been made.
	She took the note given to her from her pocket and read it. "'You are in Lucy 
Doheny's bedroom. She spent most of her time following Ned's death in her, and died in 
the very bed that sits before you.'"
	Kendra looked up. "Terrific."



Alex stood, running a hand through her hair to smooth it out after the sack had ruffled 
it. She saw she was in a modest-size bedroom. Two beds sat against either wall, with a 
bureau between the two heads, and foot lockers at the end of each bed. The dust covering 
was thick. She turned and saw the door behind her. She quickly read the note given to 
her. "'You are in Hugh Plunkett's guest bedroom.' Okay. Great."



Hearing the signal, James practically tore the hood from his head and jumped to his feet, 
spinning around. He stared into the darkness. He had been hearing strange noises ever 
since the assistant had left, and needless to say, he'd had enough. He quickly grabbed 
the note from his pocket. "Oh. Of course," he said, reading where he was. "The basement. 
Why not? What joy."



Still in the master bedroom, Chase titled his head slightly to speak into the microphone. 
Each of their harnesses were equipped with a hands-free open walkie-talkie, so that they 
could all communicate with one another without having to press a button. A tiny speaker 
was attached over their left chest. "Hey, guys. Where you all at? I'm in the master 
bedroom."
	A crackle of static, then August saying, "I'm in the attic. Kendra, where are you?"
	"I'm in Lucy's bedroom."
	"I'm in Hugh Plunkett's guest room," came Alex's reply.
	James: "The basement." They could hear the mock-enthusiasm in his voice.
	"Everybody think they can find their way back?" Chase asked, moving for the door.
	Everyone replied that they thought they could, and the room went silent as they all 
started on their way. Chase was almost to the door when he heard something, similar to a 
groan, and spun around quick. "Okay, okay," he said quickly, eyes flicking around the 
dark room. "Just take it easy. I'm leaving, I'm leaving." He opened the door and stepped 
out into the hall.
	August found the stairs to the attic and started down. He stopped suddenly with a 
startled, "Woah!"
	Kendra: "August?"
	"I'm okay," he said, looking around. "I'm alright. I just felt, like, a cool breeze 
or something. It sort of rushed up my back."
	James seemed to jump forward a little and spin around. "Damn! I just had one, too. 
I gotta get the hell out of this basement."
	"Oh my God," Alex said.
	Chase: "What is it?"
	Alex was starring with wide-eyes. "I just saw a depression form in this bed."
	Kendra: "A depression?"
	"Like the kind you leave after you get up? The sheets and the pillows didn't move, 
but there's a depression in this bed. I'm getting out of here, like, right now."
	Over the speaker, they heard Kendra yell.
	August: "Kendra?"
	Kendra: "I'm okay." She tried to put a laugh into it. "I just turned and saw my 
reflection in a mirror."
	Chase stopped in the hall and turned. "Kendra, I think I'm near you," he said, and 
started back up the hall. "I think I heard your scream come down behind me."
	Kendra: "Where are you?"
	"I'm in the hallway outside the room. I'm moving back. I think you're behind me 
somewhere. Try to get out to a hallway and call me again."
	James pulled open a door and looked up the stairs. "I knew I should have brought 
some mountain climbing gear." He started up, making sure the door shut behind him.
	Alex left the guest room and started down the hall. "I'm out of the room now. I'm 
moving down the hall, but I have no idea what area of the house I'm heading to."
	Chase stopped at a cross-section. "Kendra?"
	Kendra: "Yeah, I'm here."
	"Are you out of the room yet?"
	"Yeah, I'm in the hall."
	"Call out."
	"Uh . . . " She tried to think of what to say. "Hey! Hey!"
	"Yeah, yeah, I can hear you." He started moving. "You're close." He pointed his 
light straight ahead. "Can you see a light beam moving around?"
	"No."
	He shined it behind him. "Now?"
	"No, nothing."
	He turned right. "Anything?"
	"No."
	With a deep breath, he turned left. "How about now?"
	"Yeah, yeah, I see it. Barely. Just barely."
	"Okay, I'm on my way. Start moving towards the light."
	"Okay, I'm moving."
	Alex spun around in the hallway with a yelp.
	Chase: "Alex?"
	She shined her light down on some rats. "It's nothing. Just some rats. God, these 
things are disgusting."
	James: "Man, this place is freezing."
	August: "No kidding. The attic had no insulation. It must have just crumbled away 
over the years."
	James was reaching the top of the steps. "How much you want to bet there's some 
union guys hiding behind the walls pulling strings and rattling stuff?"
	Chase laughed as he walked down the hall. "Kendra, is the light getting brighter?"
	Kendra: "I can't see it anymore. I'm still moving towards where I saw it."
	"Okay."
	Finally getting away from the attic, August was back in a hallway, moving at a 
quickened pace, looking left and right as he passed other halls. "I'm on the move now," 
he said. He heard something and screamed. "Woah, damn! Damn! What the hell was that?"
	Alex: "What did you hear?"
	"Sounded like chains or something. Okay, whoever I meet up with first better have 
a clean pair of shorts that I can borrow."
	Kendra laughed. "Chase, I can see the light again. It's getting brighter."
	"I must be close to you then." He rounded the corner so fast she screamed, causing 
him to scream, too. "Sorry, sorry," he said with a laugh. "Had enough already?"
	"Chase, I'm with August now. I can't believe I let you talk us into this."
	"Oh, you, too?"
	She spun. "What was that?"
	Chase shined his light down the hall. "What was what?"
	"I thought I heard something."
	"Let's just get going."
	They set off back the way Chase had come. "Do you know what floor we're on?"
	"I think we're on the second story," he said. "I remember a couple flights of stairs." 
Behind him, Kendra screamed. He spun. "What? What?"
	She gestured toward a hole in the wall that looked into a room on the other side. "I 
thought I just saw something in there. Like a face or something."
	Chase shined his light in, but saw nothing. "Don't see anyhing now. Come on. Let's 
go."
	Alex came to a T-junction and looked left and right. "Oh great."
	James: "What is it?"
	"I'm at the end of the hall, and I've got two choices. Left or right."
	James smiled to himself and suggested, "Go whichever way you lean politically."
	August stopped in his tracks, staring at the wall before him. "I'm trapped," he said.
	Chase: "What?"
	"I'm trapped. This hall dead ends. I just came all the way down this hall, and it 
stops at a solid wall. Now I gotta go all the way back--ah!" He spun.
	Chase: "What happened?"
	Kendra: "August?"
	August strained to see through the darkness. Dust was visible in his light beam. "I, 
I don't know. I thought . . . it felt like a hand dragged across the back of my shoulders."
	Over the speaker, Alex screamed. Chase: "Alex?"
	Alex: "I just felt it, too." In the background, they could here the sound of her 
running.
	James: "Don't panic, Alex. Don't panic. Just stay calm."
	A sound behind James, and he was running down the hall with a scream.
	August made his way slowly, eyes wide, trying to make his steps as light as possible. 
"Okay," he said quietly. "Let's just all take it real easy. Nobody's here to hurt you. 
We're all friends." Then, with a half grin, he said, "See, here I am by myself, uh, uh, 
talking to myself, and that's, that's . . . insanity."
	Alex was walking down the hall at a brisk pace, turning her head side-to-side. "Has 
anybody met up yet?"
	Chase: "I'm with Kendra right now. Any idea where you are yet?"
	Alex paused and looked down another hall, then took the opposite. "Uh, not really. I 
passed a window back down the hall I just left, so I guess I'm near one of the sides of 
this place."
	James was walking slowly. "Do you guys hear that?"
	August: "What?"
	He stood silently for a moment, head titled slightly, listening. "It's like . . . a 
moan. A distant moaning."
	August stopped the instant he turned a corner. "Oh my God," he said.
	Kendra: "August? What is it?"
	"I am not alone."
	Alex: "Do you see something?"
	"I don't see anything, but I can feel it. I just came around this corner, and I felt, 
like, a hand press flat against my chest. And it's still there."
	Chase: "Okay, just be calm, August. Don't do anything rash."
	"Good. Good idea, Mac. Wait a minute. It just left. It just pulled away slowly. It 
just--ah!" He flinched and ran forward.
	August: "What happened?"
	August was moving quick. "It grabbed my shoulder. And it wasn't no friendly pat, it, 
like, slapped a hand on my shoulder. Where the hell is everybody?"
	James: "I don't know, but whatever it is, it's probably chasing after you now."
	"Shut up, James," August said, nearing a corner. "Just shut up."
	James was laughing when August rounded the corner and slammed into him. "Hey, hey, 
August. Fancy meeting you in these parts."
	A sound, like a crash, from the next hall, and both men were running screaming. 
August said, "We'll discuss the consequences of that little joke of your's later."



At least another fifteen minutes later, and everyone was back in the living room, gathered 
around the table. Alex came in last. "Chase, you okay?"
	"Yeah, I'm fine. You?"
	"I've been better." She sat in one of the chairs and wiped the sweet from her 
forehead. She noticed the new equipment lying on the tabletop. "What's all this?"
	"I don't know," Kendra said. "It was here when we got back."
	There were three odd-looking videocameras, a pendalim, a crystal on a string, and 
two three-foot-long metal rods. At that point, the small television set came on, and they 
saw footage of David Warner standing standing among a set that looked like something out 
of an old Hammer horror film, cloaked in low fog.
	"Congratulations on successfully completing your first challenge," he said. "Now it 
is time for the next challenge. On the table before you you will see some new equipment. 
Three thermal imaging cameras that you will use to explore different parts of the house. 
It's said that even a ghost leaves behind thermal patterns in the wake of where it's been.
	"The other three items before you will be used by you to determine the prescence of 
another being. If the pendalim and the crystal, held straight in your out-streched hand, 
began to spin counter-clockwise, it could mean you're not alone. The two rods, if you 
hold them lightly in your hands, will cross one another. The closer to your hands the 
crossing point, the stronger the prescence is.
	"There are five of you. Four of you will be able to pair off into teams of two to 
explore the rooms of your chosing. That means that one of you will be left to explore on 
your own. Your must get videotaped footage of whichever item you take registering 
supernatural or paranormal activity. Good luck."
	With that, the television flashed off, leaving them in silence. Chase looked around 
the table. "Well, who goes with who?"
	"I'm going with you," Alex said. "This place is freaky."
	August looked at Kendra. "I am not going off by myself again."
	Then, as if remembering something, they all slowly looked James, who was sitting 
quietly. "Oh, it's okay. Go off and be with someone. I'll be fine by myself, in this huge 
haunted house."
	"Sorry, James," Chase said.
	They stood and began choosing their things. They picked up the thermal cameras. 
"You wants what?" Alex asked, gesturing toward the test items.
	"I'll take the pendalim," James said, grabbing it.
	"August and I will take the rods," Kendra said.
	"Guess that leaves us with the crystal." Chase picked it up and said, "Okay, here 
we go. See you all in a little while."



"Where were you at again?" Chase asked as they walked.
	"The guest bedroom," Alex said. "Where Huge Plunkett used to stay."
	"Where the murders were, right?"
	She nodded.
	"You doing okay?"
	"I'm hanging in there. Man, those old places my friends and I used to sneak into 
back in England are nothing compared to this place."
	August lead the way. Kendra followed closely behind, holding the rods in one hand. 
"Do you remember which way to Lucy's room?"
	"I think so."
	James was standing in a hallway, fiddling with his thermal camera. "Uh, guys."
	Chase: "Yeah, James."
	"I think there's a problem with my thermal camera. It's not working or something."
	August: "It's not working?"
	"Well, it's running, and I can see when I look through the viewfinder, but it 
doesn't appear to be registering anything."
	Chase: "Did you push any buttons?"
	"Uh, yeah."
	Chase: "Well, that might be why."
	James looked at the side of the camera and placed his fingers on a couple buttons, 
then held the viewer to his eye and looked through. He began pressing each button, hoping 
to find something that would get it to work. He pushed the third button and screamed.
	August: "James, what happened?"
	"Holy crap! I, I was just messing with the camera. I was looking through and when I 
hit a button, I just saw this huge thermal pattern, like, right in front of me, then it 
just vanished. Holy crap. I say holy crap, what the hell was that?"
	Chase eased opened the guest room door and peered in. "Is this it?"
	"Yeah," Alex said, coming in behind her. "This is it. Chase, look."
	He turned. "What?"
	She pointed to the bed. "It's gone."
	"What's gone?"
	"The depression. Remember, I said earlier that a depression formed in the bed right 
in front of me, like someone was lying done? Now it's gone."
	Chase turned back, hiding his worried look. "Okay," he said. "Let's try this thing. 
Got your camera ready?"
	She held it up. "Yeah. Go ahead."
	Chase raised his arm to shoulder-length and let the crystal dangle on the end of 
the string. He handed the thermal camera to Alex and used his free hand to steady the 
crystal, then held it as still as he could. Alex zoomed in on the crystal with her 
camera, focused. Slowly, the crystal began to turn. It was moving slowly, but it was 
definitely moving counter-clockwise.
	"Oh my God," she said slowly, looking out from behind the camera. "Oh my God."
	"You got it? You got it on tape?"
	"Yeah, yeah."
	"Let me see the thermal camera." He took it from her and looked through the viewer. 
"Holy sh . . . " His voice trailed off. "Alex. This place is swamped with thermal heat 
patterns. Look at this."
	He passed the camera to here, and see looked through. A small chair suddenly moved, 
as if kicked across the room, and they both screamed, turning and making for the door.
	August and Kendra came into Lucy's room. "Let's check this place out," he said, 
raising the thermal camera to his eye. He turned in a circle, looking around the room. 
"Not much. Just some thermal patterns on the door, but that was probably from us. Break 
out those rods and let's see what we got."
	Kendra handed her digital camera to August and took a rod in each hand, holding 
them out about a foot apart. She held them lightly, keeping her thumbs off the top. August 
was filming with his camera. "They're moving, August." The ends of the rods slowly came 
toward each other, then crossed. They kept crossing, all the way down to Kendra's hands, 
until the rod ends with each pointing over to one side.
	"We are not alone," August said.
	"Knock it off, August. That isn't funny."
	He laughed. A sound behind them, like a floorboard creaking, and August turned with 
a scream.
	James had found his way to the master bedroom, with directions courtesy of Chase 
before they had all left the living room. He turned in a circle with the thermal camera 
and saw a few small heat patterns throughout the room, but nothing to make him feel more 
nervous that he already was.
	"Okay," he said. "Here we go." He took hold of the digital camera and raised the 
pendalim, letting it dangle from his hand. He filmed it as it began to slowly turn 
counter-clockwise.
	As Chase and Alex moved down the hall away from the guest room, he spotted another 
door, one that had a single board across it, nailed to the frame. "I wonder what this is," 
he said, and proceeded to remove the board.
	"Chase, do you think that's a good idea?"
	"Relax. It'll be okay." He pulled the board away and set it down, leaning it against 
the wall, then turned the handle and went it.
	It appeared to be another guest room, but contained only a single bed and a desk. 
Alex came in closely behind him. "Chase, I don't think we should--"
	"Let's just check it out really quick."
	The door started to shut by itself. Chase held it with a hand as Alex came back. 
"Watch the door. It shuts automatically."
	Alex stood against it as he pulled his hand away, but as she took a step closer to 
him, the door was freed and allowed to slowly swing close by itself. Chase looked around 
the room. "What do you think--"
	A loud crashing noise, and they were lunging from the door. But the door had already 
shut, and Alex was screaming as she tried to turn the lose handle. Another crash. "Woah!" 
Chase shouted, standing with his back to Alex. "Come on, baby! Come on!"
	"Chase, no!" She flung the door open as there was a third crash and practically 
threw herself out into the hall with Chase right behind her.
	August turned the corner into another hallway and stopped. "Um, I think we took a 
wrong turn."
	Kendra came up behind him. "Why, what is it?"
	It was a short hall that opened into a room with no door. The room's only belongings, 
other than some stacks of wood against one wall and some old dust-covered tools, was a 
wooden coffin with a lid.
	"Oh my God," she said. "Let's go, August. Right now."
	"Hang on, hang on." He raised the thermal camera to his eye and looked through. 
"Holy . . . There's a huge heat pattern inside that coffin."
	"What? August, forget it. Let's just get the hell out of here. August, what are you 
doing?"
	He was inching closer to the coffin, though he wasn't quite sure way. "Just hang on, 
Kendra." He got another foot or two closer before there was a shuffling noise, and he was 
jumping backwards, bumping Kendra. She was standing looking back down the hall, so she 
screamed when he bumped into her. "Sorry," he said, and another noise sent them screaming 
down the hall.
	James was still in the master bedroom, looking around with the thermal camera. 
Since the pendalim began spinning, several heat patterns had appeared in the room, and 
James was beginning to think it was a good time to leave. He started backing up for the 
door. A noise made him turned right, and another made him turn back again. He stumbled 
back and hit against the wall. There was the sound of shattering glass, and he turned to 
see that he had broken a large wall mirror. "Oh, great. Add that to the list."
	As if in response, a picture frame on another wall was ripped away, like someone 
would do when they were angry. James spun on his heel and bolted for the door, not wanting 
to hang around to see what else would happen.
	Chase and Alex found themselves in what looked like a large dining room. A candleabra 
was the only thing sitting on a large wooden table, with a single chair on one side. "This 
place is giving me the creeps," she said.
	"I know." Chase turned on the thermal camera and looked through it. "Not much--wait 
a minute. The candle holder."
	"What about it?"
	"It's got a hot heat pattern. It's all white."
	"White?"
	"On a thermal image, white is the hottest. And the chair. The chair has a heat 
pattern, too."
	Alex had taken the crystal out and was letting it hanging. She watched as it spun 
counnter-clockwise. "I don't like this, Chase. Let's just get out of here."
	"Okay." Lowering the camera, he began backing up with her toward the door. "Let's 
get back with the others. They should be done by now." He turned for the door, but spun 
around as there was a noise. "What was that?"
	She pointed. "Look, the chair. It's moved back from the table."
	Chase looked through the thermal camera again. "And the heat pattern is extending 
this way."
	Alex screamed and ran out of the room. Chase turned to see she had gone. "Hey, wait!" 
he shouted, and went after her.
	James paused in the hallway.
	Chase: "James, where are you?"
	"Hold on a second, Chase. Everybody keep quiet for a minute."
	He took a few steps forward, then stopped again, as if listening. He turned left 
through a door and went into a large room with several beds. "Hello? I can hear someone."
	August: "What?"
	"Someone's, like, trying to talk to me. I can barely hear them. Hello? I can't hear 
you," he said. He couldn't believe he was talking to himself. "You have to speak up, if 
. . . You have to speak up. I can't hear you that good."
	He stood in silence, turning around, head tilted slightly.
	"I can hear--it sounds almost like a woman's voice, but . . . But I can't make out 
what she's saying. Or trying to say."
	Chase: "Where are you?"
	"I'm not sure. I must be a guest room or something. There's about eight or nine beds 
in here, and--hang on." He listened. "I, I still can't hear you." He turned to face the 
door and went back out into the hall. "You're going to have to speak up." It seemed to be 
moving away from him. He tried his best to follow after it, moving a couple yards furthur 
down the hall. He stopped and looked into another room. "Hello? I can still hear you, but 
I can't tell what you're saying. You, you want me to come in there?"
	He swallowed and stepped into the room, another guest bedroom, with only three beds 
and a chair. "Oh my God."
	Kendra: "What is it?"
	"I'm in another bedroom, with three beds and a chair. There's a sheet over the chair, 
and I swear to God, it looks like someone is underneath the sheet. Like someone is sitting 
in the chair and the sheet was laid over them. Oh my God. Oh my God."
	Alex: "Do you still hear the voice?"
	"It's been talking constantly, but I can't hear what it's saying. It's like a very 
very low whisper. I can hear a voice, I can hear that someone--it sounds like a girl--is 
talking, but I just can't make out the words."
	Chase: "James, try--"
	"Hold on, Chase." He listened. "I'm sorry. You'll have to speak up. I just can't 
understand what you're saying."
	James wasn't sure where the noise came from or what it was exactly, but he didn't 
really care. He hurried out of the room and into the hall, not stopping until he was a 
couple yards away.
	August: "You okay?"
	"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I think whoever it was though just got frustrated that I 
couldn't hear what she was saying."
	Chase: "Are you done with your test yet?"
	"Yeah, I'm finished."
	Chase: "August, how about you?"
	August: "We're done, Mac. We're heading back now."
	Chase: "So are me and Alex. We'll meet you there. James, head on back now."
	"Copy that." He turned and headed down the hall.



James found Chase and Alex already in the living room when he returned. "I can't believe 
this place," he said.
	Chase said, "See anyone?"
	"Funny. No, I didn't see anyone, but there's definitely someone or something in 
here. I sure heard you guys doing a fair amount of screaming."
	"That was mostly Chase," Alex said with a smile.
	They heard a scream and turned with a yell, only to see August in the doorway, 
laughing. "You guys should have seen your faces," he said. A loud crashing noise, and it 
was August's turn to scream as he lunged through the doorway with Kendra.
	"Should have seen the look on your face, August," Chase said, and August just shot 
him a look.
	"Mac, if I get out of here alive, believe me you will pay for talking me into doing 
this."
	The television on the table clicked on, and they walked over to see it, setting 
their thermal cameras and experiment equipment down. Again, they saw David Warner on the 
same set. "You have successfully completed your second challenge, to get videotaped 
footage of your experiments registering supernatural activity. But are you ready to face 
your fears one last time?"
	August looked at Chase with an expression that said he was never going to let up on 
Chase for this whole night.
	"In the final challenge, you will once again be hooded and removed to separate 
locations, and be forced to find your way back. But one of you must return to Hugh 
Plunkett's guest room and find his silver ring, the very same silver ring he wore on the 
night he murdered Ned Doheny. You must retrieve it and return with it to perform a 
cleansing ceremony that will protect you from being harmed by the spirits once you leave 
this place. Good luck."
	The assistants returned, and the five traded last-minute glances before the hoods 
were put over their heads.



Chase found himself in the basement, August in Lucy's bedroom. Kendra and Alex were each 
in a bedroom, and James was seated in the kitchen. Chase stood. "Okay, everybody. Where 
are you? I think I'm in the basement." He squinted through the darkness.
	August: "I'm back in Lucy's bedroom. And I do not like it."
	Kendra: "I'm in a bedroom, but I don't know which one. What was in Plunkett's 
guest room?"
	Alex: "Two beds, two footlockers, and a bureau between the heads of the bed."
	Kendra: "Then this isn't it. Just another bedroom, I guess."
	Chase moved through the basement, stepping over the dust-covered floor. "Alex?"
	Alex: "Another bedroom, too."
	Auugst: "James, how about you?"
	"I'm in the kitchen," he said, looking around. "Don't know about you, but this place 
doesn't exactly put me in the mood to eat."
	"Okay, this what we're going to do," Chase said. "Everybody get out of their room 
and into a hall so you can describe, as best you can, the area you're in. We've been 
through this house a few times already, so hopefully someone will recognize someone 
else's description and know where they are."
	August: "Sounds good to me."
	Kendra opened the door and stepped out into the hall. "Okay, I'm in the hall."
	Alex: "I'm out, too. What do you see?"
	"Um, dust. Lots and lots of dust. On the walls, on the floor. There's a chandelier a 
few yards down the hall, but that's about it for distinguishing features."
	Chase: "Alex?"
	"I think I may be near the guest rooms," she said. "The hallway looks familiar."
	Kendra: "There's also a dumbwaiter out here, and--"
	James: "A dumbwaiter?"
	"Yeah, it's right here in front of me. Why?"
	James: "Hang on a second." A moment of silence, then: "Kendra, look down the chute."
	She stepped forward and peered in, shining her light. Below, she saw James leaning 
in and looking up, waving. "I'm right below you. Do you see any stairs up there anywhere?"
	"No."
	"Okay, just a minute. Stay there." He left the chute.
	August: "Kendra, you're near him?"
	"I'm right above him, August. He's looking to see if there's stairs nearby so--"
	"Kendra," James's voice came up the chute.
	She leaned in. "Yeah?"
	"From where you're standing, go down the hall to your right. Then turn left. There's 
some stairs about halfway down that hall. I'll meet you at the bottom of them."
	"Okay, I'm on my way."
	Alex moved down the hallway. "Chase, where are you?"
	Chase: "I'm out in the hall. I just came out of the basement. You?"
	"I think I'm near the guest rooms. This hallway really looks familiar, and--" She 
turned with a yelp, looking into the darkness.
	"Alex?"
	"It's okay. Nothing." She started moving again. "Anyway, this hall really looks 
familiar. I think I'm really close to Plunkett's bedroom."
	Chase: "You want me to catch up to you, or you want to do this on your own?"
	"I think I can do it myself."
	"You're sure?"
	"Yeah, I'm sure."
	Kendra came down the stairs and found James waiting him. "Glad to see somebody," she 
said.
	James laughed. "This place is creepy, hu?"
	"That's an understatement if there ever was one." They set off down the hall.
	August made his way, continually throwing glances back over his shoulder, humming 
to himself to cover the eerie silence around him. He stopped and stood still, still 
humming, nervously. He turned and gasped. "Oh my God."
	Chase: "What is it?"
	"Mac, I just turned around, and I swear--I swear--that I just saw the back of 
someone as they stepped out of the reach of my light. It looked like a man."
	Chase: "August, Kendra's with James. Alex is on her way to Plunkett's guest room, 
and I'm going to meet up with here."
	"Okay, Chase," he said slowly, still staring into the darkness beyond the beam of 
his light. "You do that. I'm just gonna keep on whistling." He set off down the hall 
again, whistling a half-forgotten jazz tune.
	Alex eased upon the door to Hugh Plunkett's guest room and looked in. She 
definitely did not want to be here again, but she had no choice. Something had to be 
retrieved from the room, and she was the closest. With a deep breath, she stepped in, 
making sure the door stayed open.
	She crossed the room slowly. She glanced at a dusty mirror on the wall, and for a 
brief instant, thought someone was standing in the doorway behind her. She turned with a 
yell, but the space was empty. She swallowed and continued on toward the bureau. She 
gently opened the first drawer and found a small silver ring lying inside. She picked it 
up and blew off the dust, examining it in her light.
	"I've got it," she said. "I've got the ring."
	Chase: "Good job, Alex."
	"I'm heading back now." She put the ring in her pocket and started back, but not 
before she saw a depression form in the bed beside her. "I'm definitely heading back now."
	She turned and hurried toward the door, rushing out and screaming as she bumped 
into something. It was Chase. "Sorry," he said.



Within moments, they were back in the living room, seated around the table. They looked 
exhausted, as if they had been on the same rollercoaster a dozen times in a row. The 
television flicked on. "Congratulations. You have survived the night in Greystone Mansion. 
But before you leave, you must take part in a cleansing ritual to wash yourself of the 
spirits who inhabit this place."
	A door opened, and a person came into the light. She was dressed oddly and carried 
a book. She got them arranged into a circle. They each held their hands out together, 
cupped, and stacked their hands together. Chase's hands were on top, and it was into his 
that the woman placed Plunkett's ring. She began to read a strange-sounding text from the 
book, and they each repeated her words exactly.
	When it was over, they were seated again. David Warner returned, crossing the room 
toward them. "I congratulate you on your survival of Greystone Mansion. Chase, you said 
before you came here that you were 'something of a believer.' Are you a full believer 
now?"
	"Absolutely," he said. "Absolutely. I've definitely, uh, experienced more than 
enough to know that I do fully believe now."
	"August," David said. "You and your wife were the skeptics of the group. How do 
you feel now?"
	"I feel I was wrong," August said. "There's definitely something in this house, and 
I've experienced it. So now I think I'm more open-minded to these kinds of things now."
	"I kind of feel the same way as August does," Kendra said, "although I believe that 
it may also be a combition of your own fear and anxiety that makes you feel or see what 
you think you're feeling or seeing."
	David turned to Alex. "Alex?"
	"Like I said, I'm very open to the world of the supernatural, and I really feel as 
if I set foot in that world tonight. There's no doubt in my mind that we were in a place 
that doesn't want people."
	"James," David said, "you were the most open-minded of the group. How do you feel 
after the night's events?"
	"Fully secure in my beliefs. Though I haven't previously had any personal 
supernatural or paranormal experiences, I was always open to the notion of there being 
another world out there, and this house, I really feel, is a part of that world. I mean, 
there is definitely something here. Definitely."
	The post-event discussion lasted for several more minutes, and then it was over, 
and the five were returning outside. The sky was just beginning to lighten, the few 
remaining starts blinking faintly in the sky. The van was coming up the driveway. "Well," 
Chase said, turning to August. "We survived, didn't we?"
	"Yeah. Yeah, we survived, Mac. But you might not."
	"What do you mean, August?"
	The van arrived, and they began climbing in.
	"Mac, you single-handedly sent me on the most intense, unbearable, scariest night 
of my life. You owe me, Mac. You will owe me big time."
	James was smiling in amusement as he pulled the side door shut, and the van pulled 
off down the driveway.